Donna Lewis, who rose to fame in 1996 with her megahit song "I Love You Always Forever," had elaborate plans to commemorate the song's 25th anniversary in 2021. But a breast cancer diagnosis abruptly put an end to her festivities. Lewis, 64, was taken aback by the news because she felt great and showed no symptoms at all. "In a recent interview from her New York home, I didn't feel any lumps or anything unusual," she said. "It was a complete shock."
Lewis disclosed that she experienced feelings of guilt regarding the diagnosis. "I used to get my mammograms regularly, but I missed one during COVID," she said. "At my last mammography, they discovered something. The word "cancer" is frightening to hear."
Lewis had additional testing after the initial shock, such as biopsies and ultrasounds, which showed she had stage 2A HER2+ breast cancer in one breast. "I remember having two tumors," she said. "Regular screening is so important. If I had kept up with my mammograms, I might have only needed medication. Instead, I faced chemo, surgery, and radiation."
Her treatment started at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City with an exhausting 12-week chemotherapy regimen. "I've always avoided medication unless absolutely necessary," Lewis said. "I don't even take anything for headaches. So, undergoing chemo felt like I was putting poison into my body just to stay alive."
After chemotherapy, Lewis decided on a double mastectomy, despite cancer being found in only one breast. "I just wanted to be done with it," she said, opting to forego reconstruction surgery. "I wanted to move on with my life. All the cancer was removed."
What remained, however, was her creative spirit. Throughout her treatment, Lewis kept a journal, which became a source of inspiration for new music. When producer Holmes Ives sent her instrumental tracks, she found lyrics flowing from her journal entries. This creative outpouring resulted in her new album, Rooms with a View, an experimental electronica project that indirectly chronicles her cancer journey through songs like "Imposter," "The Messenger," and the title track "Rooms with a View." "Music was my therapy," she said. "Writing and recording this album was incredibly healing for me."
Despite the hardships, including loss of appetite, mouth sores, and nosebleeds, Lewis now feels good and more attuned to her body. "I feel like myself again," she said. "I'm making music and living my life. I'm happy."
Her perspective on life has profoundly changed. "We never know when our last day will be," said Lewis, who now advocates for breast cancer awareness as an ambassador for Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. "So many women face breast cancer; it’s alarming. You're always a bit anxious during checkups, hoping for clear results. But life goes on, and being happy is essential."
The Quran - Chapter At-Tur : 37 - 43
Or do they possess the treasuries of your Lord, or are they in control ˹of everything˺?
Or do they have a stairway, by which they eavesdrop ˹on the heavens˺? Then let those who do so bring a compelling proof.
Or does He have daughters ˹as you claim˺, while you ˹prefer to˺ have sons?
Or are you ˹O Prophet˺ asking them for a reward ˹for the message˺ so that they are overburdened by debt?
Or do they have access to ˹the Record in˺ the unseen, so they copy it ˹for all to see˺?
Or do they intend to scheme ˹against the Prophet˺? Then it is the disbelievers who will fall victim to ˹their˺ schemes.
Or do they have a god other than Allah? Glorified is Allah far above what they associate ˹with Him˺!
The addressees of a preacher invariably exist on the level of materialism. In view of this, if they have the feeling that the preacher of Truth wants to take some material thing from them, they immediately shy away from him.
That is why a preacher of Truth never allows any material demand to crop up between his addressees and himself.
To the very end, he maintains an atmosphere of selflessness between his addressees and himself.
In so doing he may have to bear some material loss. When a preacher proves his seriousness to this extent with regard to his call for Truth, he then becomes entitled to God’s help, so much so that the unbelievers find all their tricks and devices recoiling on them, rendering them unsuccessful in gaining the upper hand.
